Empty Spaces
by SkyGem
Summary: "In seven years, come see us in Loguetown," says Marco, taking a page out of Shanks' book and plopping his own favourite cowboy hat down on Ace's head. Whitebeards AU. Two-shot. No pairings.
1. Tear-stained Promise

The last impression Marco will have of Luffy is of big brown eyes staring forlornly back at him, of tiny hands clutching at his shirt as if they never want to let go, and a whispered, "I'm gonna miss you".

He kisses Luffy's forehead and sends him off with a reply of, "I'll miss you too."

Sabo throws his arms around Marco's neck, and the last impression Marco will have of him is a face full of soft blond hair and cheeks wet against his neck.

"It was nice, having big brothers," he says with a watery smile, and Marco laughs because he can't get any words around the lump in his throat. He sends him off, back to their grandfather, who is standing in the background with his arms crossed and his face set in a mask of disapproval.

The only one of the brats that isn't crying is Ace, ever the strong one.

But when Marco pulls him in for one last hug, he's shaking.

" _We're going to set sail when Sabo and I turn 17,"_ Ace whispers into his ear, voice determined. _"When that happens, will there still be a place for us here?"_

He sounds so young then, so much smaller than his ten years, and Marco feels his throat close up.

He doesn't answer – instead, he pulls back, smooths back Ace's wild black hair, drops a kiss on top of his head.

"Always," he murmurs, quiet as a breath.

Ace beams up at him.

"We have people waiting for us back at Dawn," says the boy, mature beyond his years. "Jiji needs us."

And Marco knows it's the truth.

Marco's known the brats for a grand total of three months now, ever since that day he rescued them from that disgusting excuse for a human being that had kidnapped them from their home island, but seeing them go hurts just as much as saying farewell to any of his brothers ever does.

He doesn't say the Whitebeard pirates need them too.

Because he's known, right from the beginning, that the brats weren't here to stay.

But somehow he'd found himself becoming attached to them, and he knows he isn't the only one. Thatch is going to be crying about this for the next month, he's sure, and Izo's going to disappear somewhere after this to touch up his makeup.

* * *

The days pass one by one by one.

They stretch into weeks and months and years.

And suddenly it's that time of year again, and seven years have come and gone.

It's that time of year that always makes his insides ache.

That makes him ache fiercely for something he hasn't had in a long, long time.

The sun is beating down, painfully hot, just like it had been on that day.

His brothers and sisters are out and about, doing all the daily chores necessary to keep a ship of this size running.

Their family has grown, in these past seven years. It's grown so big they don't all fit on one ship any more.

But no matter how crowded it becomes, no matter how much his brothers groan and grumble about not having any space to themselves, there are strange little empty pockets here and there that would seem strange to anyone not accustomed to them.

He's overheard newcomers asking about it sometimes, asking why that one little corner of the barracks is always abandoned, why no one dares claim that empty bed, why no one bothers to clean up the blankets strewn about as if someone has only just vacated it.

They ask if they can sit with Marco and Thatch and Izo for lunch or dinner, then stare in confusion at the three empty seats when they're told there's no room.

And Marco doesn't bother to explain because he knows someone else will.

* * *

It's that time of the year again, and Marco is sitting out on deck, next to his father, when he sets his sake bottle down.

"My son," he says, and Marco looks up, and he knows what's coming.

"Yes, oyaji?"

"How many years has it been now?"

"Seven years."

His father nods.

"Tell the navigators to change course.

It's time we set sail for Paradise."

* * *

" _In seven years, come see us in Loguetown," says Marco, taking a page out of Shanks' book and plopping his own favourite cowboy hat down on Ace's head._

 _Ace looks down, letting the brim of the hat throw his face into shadow._

 _He's still shaking, but he nods once, then turns and runs back towards his brothers without another glance._

 _Marco's last impression of him is of a retreating back, and a tear-stained promise._


	2. Keep It

Sometimes, it's easy to forget that the Moby Dick is a pirate ship.

Sure, they have the jolly roger and the 'ruthless' pirates and the world's strongest man sitting in the middle of the deck, but then they also have days like this.

Days where they've just sighted the next island, and the crew is all aflutter with the anticipation of what they'll find there. Half the crew is running back and forth, fixing their hair or asking any brother or sister that will listen to them, "Does this shirt look okay?" or "What do you think? Are the brats too old now to enjoy this collection of fairy tales I bought for them? Oh I knew I should have gotten them those antique rifles after all!"

The other half, namely those who had joined the crew in the past seven years, are watching on in confusion. None of them can make any sense of the situation, and those that understand what's happening will only look at them blankly for a moment when they're confronted, before moving on whilst mumbling to themselves about "brats" and "homecoming."

The names "Ace," "Sabo," and "Luffy" tend to come up most often.

When Haruta finally manages to catch hold of Izo (who is particularly stunning today, having put on one of his favourite kimono and paid extra attention to his makeup), they finally get an answer.

"The reason we've come to Loguetown is to pick up three of our brothers," he answers.

"Our brothers?" asks Haruta, his brows furrowing in confusion. "I didn't notice anyone was gone at the moment."

It's actually pretty strange, now that he thinks about it. None of his brothers or sisters have been going on any missions since they first entered Paradise.

Izo shakes his head. "They've been away since before you joined. Seven years, to be exact."

"Seven years!?" demands Haruta, shocked. By now, some of the other crew members who don't understand what's going on have also gathered around, and are having similar reactions. "Where have they been all this time?"

"On their home island," answers Izo with a shrug. "The oldest two were only ten when we met them, and the youngest was seven. After three months with us, they had to return home, but they promised to join up with us in Loguetown when they set sail in seven years."

By now, the others have started murmuring excitedly to each other about what an interesting story that is, and how cool it'll be to have three new brothers. It's already been a while since any new members have joined.

Haruta, on the other hand, is slightly skeptical.

"You only knew them for three months?" he asks. "How do you know they didn't change their minds about wanting to be pirates?"

At these words, all activity on the deck ceases, and everyone turns to Haruta, expressions surprisingly sorrowful.

"What?" he asks, feeling suddenly on edge.

"You don't think we haven't all thought that before?" asks Thatch, and suddenly, Haruta feels like the jackass that kicked the puppy. Of course they've all thought it, he tells himself. It's probably why they're running around, making such a spectacle of things. It's their way of keeping the doubts at bay, reassuring themselves and their siblings that their waiting hasn't been in vain.

Before he can form an apology, there's a cry from the lookout in the crow's nest, and the crew flies into a flurry of activity, getting ready to dock.

The dismal mood quickly dissipates, and Haruta decides to keep his big, fat mouth closed lest he say something wrong again.

* * *

They've been in Loguetown for a week now, and Sabo is starting to get worried.

There's still been no sign of the Whitebeard pirates, and he can't help but wonder if they have been forgotten. He's tried to bring the topic up with his brothers before (they can't wait in Loguetown forever after all, not if they want to be pirates), but neither of them are having any of it. Luffy will just stare at him blankly for a moment, before saying in a voice full of utter faith, "They won't break their promise."

And Ace will agree with a shrug, saying, "They were all the way out in the New World, Sabo, I'm not surprised they're a little late. Not to mention we never decided on an exact date."

But his confident words are betrayed by the way he fiddles with the skull charm hanging from the leather cord he'd attached to his hat a few years ago (his only nervous tic). The hat has changed a lot since he'd first gotten it from Marco. There are two smiley faces (a happy and a sad one) on a beaded cord around the base of it now (Sabo thinks this is probably a reference to the goggles on his own hat), and a cord had been attached to it to keep it from flying away. Originally, the charm at the end of the cord had just been a counter-weight to the hat, so the cord wouldn't bite into Ace's neck when he wore it on his back, but when Ace ate his devil fruit, Garp had the brilliant idea to mix in just a little bit of kairoseki into the skull. It's not enough to sap all his energy, but just enough to mute Ace's powers until he learned to control them, so he wouldn't accidentally hurt his brothers or burn down the house in his sleep.

"I guess," answers Sabo, and allows himself to be distracted from his doubts by an excited Luffy, begging to go to this store or that one.

Until now, he hasn't asked to go to the one place Sabo is sure he wants to see the most, out of respect for Ace, but Sabo knows it's only a matter of time.

Surprisingly, Ace is the one that brings it up first in the end.

"Hey Lu, wanna go see the execution stand?"

* * *

They've been in town for exactly fifteen minutes when Izo's group first hears news on the reason they're here.

Izo, who's doing his best to tune out the catcalls and the people freaking out about the Whitebeard pirates in East Blue, almost doesn't notice it when Vista stops in his tracks.

"Vista?" he asks, coming to a stop and following his brother's gaze to where two men are laughing about something or other.

There doesn't seem to be anything special about them, and Izo is about to turn away, until he hears what they're talking about.

"-idiot in a strawhat," one laughs to his friend.

Freezing, Izo turns back to them as the friend laughs, and the other continues.

"And the marines are all just standing there, yelling at him to get down, and the kid still can't move because he's somehow got himself locked in. So one of his friends, the shirtless dude with the cowboy hat, starts climbing up, and the marines start shouting at _him-_ "

Izo lets out a groan, knowing immediately who they must be talking about, and gestures to his brothers to follow him.

"Sounds like our idiot is at the execution stand," he growls, earning chuckles from the other three.

"Can't say I'm surprised," says Vista. "Luffy always did have a knack for finding trouble. Anything dangerous within a five mile radius is inevitably drawn to him."

"He's honed it down to a damned art form," growls Izo, shaking his head, but there's no heat behind his words. Because now they know for sure that their idiots are actually _here_ and they'll be meeting them soon, and just the thought is enough to make him feel giddy.

They head off in the direction of the execution stand is in, so focused on their goal that they don't notice a blond in a slightly scruffy blue tailcoat disappear into an alley up ahead, holding his tophat in one hand and pushing his brothers forward with the other, warning them to go faster or the marines will catch up.

* * *

Thatch and Namur have been absentmindedly wandering Loguetown for about twenty minutes when they reach the town square, which holds the famous execution stand the pirate king died on.

The square is unnaturally crowded, and almost everyone seems to be in a good mood, laughing about something. Perhaps there's been a performance?

There are a few marines standing around at the base of the execution stand though, and they look more than a little put out, glowering every once in a while at an entrance on the opposite side of the square they've just entered from.

Thatch looks in that direction too, wondering what's caught their attention, and is just in time to see Izo enter, with three of their siblings in tow, all looking quite harried, but expectant.

Thatch, who's already started making his way towards them, notices Izo's eyes land on the execution stand, and his expression immediately becomes disappointed.

"What's wrong, Izo?" Namur asks once they're close enough, evidently having seen Izo's expression as well.

"We've heard that the brats were just seen here," Izo answers with a frown.

Thatch's eyes widen in startled excitement, and his lips pull into a smile.

"Really?" he asks, unable to contain his excitement. "Does it have anything to do with why the marines were glaring in your direction earlier?"

Izo's eyes widen. "In our direction?" he asks. "Damn! We must have just missed them!"

Thatch watches him and the others run back in the direction they'd just come from, expression bemused.

Vista decides to stay with him and Namur, and explains with a laugh.

"Apparently Luffy was playing around on the execution stand and got himself trapped."

Thatch bursts into laughter at that as they start walking in the direction Izo had gone.

"That kid hasn't changed a bit!" he exclaims. "Remember the time he-"

"Shut up!" hisses Namur suddenly, grabbing his arm and pulling him to a stop. Thatch's mouth snaps shut with an audible click, and he listens hard for whatever caught his brother's attention.

"-scary, man. Don't know what kinda poisonous thing he must've eaten or touched, but the dude just died mid-sentence, his fork on the way to his mouth."

Thatch frowns. What is it about that sentence that caught his attention? Why does it sound so familiar?

"I know," replies the companion of the one who had just talked. "And his friends were so cold. The one in the tophat actually laughed!"

Thatch's eyes widen, and he turns to stare at Namur. "Didn't Ace used to fall asleep in the middle of his meals sometimes?" he whispers.

The fishman nods. "The tophat guy is probably Sabo," he replies before turning back to the guys who'd been talking.

"The dude in the red vest even started drawing on the poor sap's face! 'Connect the freckles,' he called it!"

Thatch and Vista immediately slap their hands to their mouths, just barely able to muffle their startled laughter at the name of one of their brother's favourite past-times. Yeah, that's definitely the brats they're talking about.

"Where was this?" demands Namur, approaching the two men.

They stare warily at the fishman for a moment before pointing over their shoulders in the direction they've just come from.

"They were in the bar down at the end of that street, but-"

Namur takes off, not bothering to listen to the rest, and his brothers follow right on his heels.

They want to get to the bar as quick as possible. They've already missed the brats once, and they aren't eager to do it again.

When they reach the bar, there's a crowd at the entrance, and Thatch feels relief course through him. Hopefully the brats are still there.

They're so focused on getting through the crowd though, they don't notice three boys leave it from the other side, a boy in a red vest guarding the back of his head and trying to escape his freckled brother's rage.

* * *

Marco sighs as he exits the grocery store.

He's been going around, putting in orders for supplies they'll need before setting sail again, and he's damn tired of it. He just wants to go looking for the brats already.

Just as he's turning towards his next destination though, he sees Thatch, Namur, and Vista exit the bar just across the road.

Before the door to the establishment closes, Marco thinks he hears one of the employees inside complaining about a dine-and-dash.

Ignoring that, he turns his attention to his brothers, who are looking quite dejected.

"Something wrong?" asks Marco, approaching them.

Thatch's eyes light up when he sees Marco, and he cries, "Dude! Just the brother I needed to see!"

Raising an eyebrow as the chef throws an arm around his shoulders, Marco asks, "What's going on-yoi?"

"The brats were just eating in that bar," Thatch says, pointing back. "We just missed them."

Marco's eyes widen slightly, and he feels excitement flare up inside him.

"The dine-and-dash?" he asks, remembering what he'd just heard, and his brothers laugh.

"That's what we think, yes," answers Namur.

"So I was thinking," interrupts Thatch then, drawing Marco's attention back to him. "Maybe you could fly over the town, looking for them? We missed them at the town square earlier too, so this is really starting to get ridiculous."

Marco doesn't even need to consider the request.

Handing his to-do list to Thatch, he explains to him what still needs to be done, then takes off, into the skies above Loguetown.

The town is one of the larger ones in East Blue, so Marco flies around for half an hour before he stumbles upon his first lead.

There is what appears to be an angry crowd down on the road, and Marco only has to hear the words "cowboy hat" before he drops to the ground with a sigh, wondering what trouble these three have gotten themselves into this time.

"What's going on-yoi?" he asks, ignoring the stunned exclamations of people wondering why the hell Marco the Phoenix is here.

"It's those damn kids that've been staying at Mako's inn this past week," answers a man, crossing his arms. "They've been causing trouble all over town, and just now they passed through here, pick-pocketing everyone on their way."

"How do you know it was them-yoi?" asks Marco, and the man raises an eyebrow.

"That charming one that's dressed like a noble kept bumping into everyone down the street. We just thought he was drunk, until we realized our wallets and jewelry were missing. By then, he and his friends were long gone."

Groaning, Marco rubs a hand down his face.

"Did you see where they went-yoi?" he asks.

The man points in the direction of the docks, and Marco takes off again.

* * *

They're walking towards the docks, checking out how much they'd managed to steal, when they see it.

Ace (who's washed the marker off his face by now) and Sabo have their heads bent together, discussing in low tones how much they think a certain diamond necklace is worth when Luffy lifts his head, and promptly freezes in his tracks, all the breath whooshing out of him at once.

Noticing that their brother is no longer beside them, the other two stop as well and look back at him.

"Luffy? What's wrong?" asks Sabo, confused.

The boy doesn't answer, instead pointing in the direction they'd just been walking in.

Ace and Sabo both turn to see what's caught his attention, and freeze as well, breaths catching in their throats.

They stand there in silence for a few moments, staring, before Ace jabs Sabo in the ribs with an elbow.

"Told you," he says, expression smug.

Sabo just frowns and shoves him away.

"What do you think we should do?" he asks. "Looks like everyone's gone out. Should we wait for them to come back? Or go looking for them in the town?"

"Nah, that town is huge," answers Ace. "We'd never find them…but I bet pops is still onboard."

"Shishishi, it'd cause a huge commotion in town if he went out," adds Luffy, agreeing with his brother. Then, with a mischievous grin at the two, he asks, "We should probably go and greet him first of all, ne?"

Twin smiles stretch across the other two's faces as well at their brother's suggestion.

"Think we should bring some sake as an offering?" asks Sabo, looking thoughtful.

"Nah," says Ace, "That's for rivals or allies. Family doesn't need to bring an offering."

"But we haven't seen them in years," points out Sabo with a frown.

"All the more reason to go see him as soon as possible," Ace retorts immediately.

Sabo, still unsure, turns to ask Luffy what he thinks, only to find that his baby brother is no longer behind him and is, in fact, halfway across the gangplank onto the Moby Dick.

"I guess that answers that," mutters Sabo with a groan, following Luffy and Ace onto the Whitebeards' flagship.

* * *

Haruta is sitting on the arm of his father's chair, chatting with him while some nurses work quietly nearby, when he first hears it.

He'd stayed behind to watch the Moby Dick while all his brothers went to explore the town and look for the three brother they're here for, and other than him, his pops, and the three nurses currently on deck, he knows for a fact that there shouldn't be anyone else on board.

So when he hears the creak of a floorboard in the hallway leading to the galley, he's immediately on alert.

He knows his captain must have heard it too, from the way his eyes flick over for a second, but his expression remains relaxed and he keeps talking, so Haruta settles back down, still feeling slightly wary.

He's still on edge a moment later, when he sees three heads pop around the corner, a few feet behind Whitebeard's chair, and he almost shouts a warning before his pops meets his gaze and gives the smallest shake of his head.

His eyes close then, his lips stretching into an amused smile, and Haruta looks around, wondering what on Earth is going on.

The three nurses are still going about their work, but they're muffling amused giggles behind their clipboards now, and Haruta turns back to the three intruders, a growing suspicion rising within him.

Two of them seem to be about 17, both tall and gangly, but with a good amount of muscle, and the last looks just the same, except possibly a few years younger.

They're all sporting the same, mischievous grins, tiptoeing forward on near silent feet, which is actually pretty impressive.

If it had been anyone else, Haruta knows they would have been taken by surprise.

But then they're right behind pops' chair, and they open their mouths wide, sucking in huge lungfuls of air as if about to shout, and pops finally stops the one-sided conversation he's been continuing with Haruta until now.

"You brats are a million years too early to take me by surprise," he says, and Haruta watches the three would-be "attackers" visibly deflate, their expressions dismayed.

The laughter of the three nurses peals through the air then, and one of them is hiding her red face behind her clipboard.

"How did you know!?" demands the one in the cowboy hat before turning to glare at one of the nurses who was struggling to catch her breath. "It was you, wasn't it Mimi?"

"It wasn't!" protests Mimi, getting her laughing under control only to crack up again when Whitebeard's own laughter booms across the deck.

"GURARARARA!" he laughs, looking down at the three boys who've come around to the front of his chair, pouting like children caught with their hand in the cookie jar. His expression is fond as he looks at them, and Haruta is taken aback at the softness in his eyes.

"You brats have grown quite a bit," he says, and their pouts clear up to be replaced by expressions of pride.

The youngest, the one in the straw hat, chuckles and, before Haruta can stop him, climbs up onto Whitebeard's chair and throws his arms around the man's neck in a floppy-limbed embrace.

"It's good to see you again, pops!" he declares, burying his face into the older man's shoulder, and not a second later the other two join him.

Haruta isn't sure how to react.

He wants to protest, to get up and stop them, but his pops looks so _happy_ and the nurses aren't complaining either, so he decides to just watch quietly, feeling slightly out of place and more than a little awkward, intruding on this reunion.

Whitebeard wraps both arms around the three boys.

"It's good to see you too, my sons."

* * *

Marco doesn't see any sign of the brats on the path to the docks, and he's just begun to wonder if it's more likely that they turned down a side street or continued all the way to the water's edge, when he hears his father's booming laugh.

And suddenly, he knows what must have happened.

Feeling the anticipation building in him, he heads straight towards the Moby Dick and, sure enough, he sees three too many people on the deck with his father.

He's just in time to see their failed attempt at scaring him, and once they've had their fair share of time reacquainting themselves with their father, he lands with a quite thump on the deck, transforming as soon as his feet touch down.

Everyone turns at the sound, and Marco almost can't breathe when he sees his three little brothers' faces for the first time in seven years.

They've grown so much, and there's a part of him that's mourning the fact that he never got to see them grow up himself, but he's mostly so amazed at the young men they've become.

They all look strong, lean muscles wrapping around their arms and legs and torsos, but even after everything this cruel world has thrown at them, they've kept their same sweet smiles.

They've all obviously been crying, but Luffy is the only one that doesn't try to hide it, sobbing again and throwing himself off pops' chair to run at Marco.

"Pineapple head!" he yells, jumping onto the first division commander and curling his body around him, wrapping all his limbs multiple times around his big brother.

"It's Marco-yoi," he corrects, returning the hug.

"Right," chuckles Luffy, not looking up and more than likely wiping his snot on Marco's shirt.

He decides to let it slide just this once.

"We missed you, Marco," says Sabo, coming up to hug him next, and Marco smiles at the blond, running a hand through his hair and cupping his cheek.

"We missed you too, brat," he says, unable to hug him because his arms are still full of Luffy.

Ace approaches next, and Marco is most startled by the change in him. That darkness, that burden he used to carry around when he was a child is all but gone now, and he's softened somewhat, into an amiable young man.

He hooks a finger into the cord of the cowboy hat on his head, which Marco almost doesn't recognize anymore, and smirks.

"I took good care of it for you."

* * *

It's been an hour since they ran into Marco, and Thatch, Vista, and Namur are wandering around town, still looking for the brats and resolutely ignoring the list of chores Marco had given them.

At one point, they had joined back up with Izo, and the four are now trying their best not to feel disheartened at the fact that they haven't heard any more rumours about their baby brothers.

They're heading back in the direction of the docks, which they haven't checked yet, when they begin hearing the faint sounds of a party.

Looking at each other in interest, they decide to follow it, and along the way, they pass two girls whispering to each other in quiet tones.

"It's still broad daylight. It's shameful for them to be partying like that so early. They need to get their shit together," one is muttering under her breath, only to receive a smack on the head from her friend.

"They're pirates, of course they don't have their shit together," she says. "And anyways, don't say something like that about the Whitebeard pirates. What if one of them hears us?"

Thatch's eyes widen in surprise, and he turns to look at his brothers, who are all sporting the same shocked looks as him.

"There's only one reason they'd be partying like that," says Namur, stating what they're all thinking.

And before he's even done speaking, Izo dashes off in the direction of their ship, followed closely by the others.

They arrive, panting and wheezing, in front of the Moby Dick a few minutes later, and Thatch is a little peeved to see that Izo's hair and makeup and clothes still look absolutely flawless.

The man notices him staring, and sticks his tongue out childishly before turning to run up the gangplank and onto the ship.

Thatch follows closely behind, and he finds they don't have to look very hard to locate their honored guests.

The musicians of the crew are already playing full blast, and Thatch knows he'll be dragged into the kitchens soon enough to help get the feast started, so he has to find them quickly and-

And suddenly, he reaches the deck, and there they are.

The three of them are sitting on the armrests of pops' chair, and there's a huge crowd around them.

It's not hard to tell their crewmates have all been drinking, because everyone's faces are bright red and they're all laughing just a little too hard, because no matter what it's about, there's no way the story Luffy and the others are telling them is _that_ funny.

Or maybe it is.

Thatch never does find out in the end because, just then, Luffy's eyes cut right through their partying crewmates and land right on Thatch.

"THATCHY!" he screams, standing up, and Ace and Sabo's heads immediately snap around to follow his gaze.

And then next thing he knows, he and Izo and Vista and Namur are all being attacked by crying teenagers, and they're hugging so hard he can barely breathe, but he doesn't say anything, because for the life of him, he can't remember the last time he was this unbelievably happy.

* * *

The party lasts through the afternoon and well into the night, and no one says anything because they're the Whitebeard pirates after all.

And finally, it's way past midnight, something like three in the morning, and very nearly everyone is passed out, a few in various stages of undress.

Marco is up in the crow's nest, on watch, because his family doesn't need to be caught off guard and possibly hurt on what is supposed to be a happy day, no matter how unlikely the chances.

And Ace is standing next to him, both arms on the railing and chin resting on top of them.

They're quiet for the longest time, watching their family, and the hat is still on Ace's head.

Marco hasn't had the heart to ask for it back, and he's trying to find the best way to bring up the topic when Ace looks right over at him, as if he's read his mind.

And he says, quite simply, "I'm not giving it back."

Marco is taken by surprise, but after a moment he chuckles softly. He wouldn't feel right taking it back anyways. It's changed so much these years under Ace's loving hands, it's not even the same hat any more.

He doesn't mind. He still gets to have the most important part of their promise.

"Keep it."

* * *

 _ **Fin**_

* * *

SkyGem: Wowie. That chapter was a lot longer than I expected it to be. The ASL brothers got a little out of hand, as I'm sure you noticed. But I enjoyed writing it, and I really hope you all enjoyed reading it too. I feel like there's really so much I could do with this fic, but I think I'll leave it at this. I actually have a proper Whitebeards AU planned, a nice long multi-chap where the brothers grow up with them, which is why I decided to make this a two-shot. But I invite anyone who likes the idea to adopt it. No need to ask for my permission. Just let me know so I can read it, and please do credit me, yeah? Anyways, that's all for now! Please leave a review and let me know what you thought!


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